Bitter cold causes water woes in Wausau area

8:44 PM,
Feb. 17, 2014

Tim Mesalk of Wausau Water Works hauls an electrical line to a fire hydrant Monday on Jefferson Street. He and his partner were preparing to run an electrical current through a pipe into a nearby building to melt ice that was blocking the water.

Written by

Shereen Siewert
Daily Herald Media

Utility workers are putting in 16-hour shifts fixing ruptured, cracked or frozen water pipes in the Wausau area - an annual problem compounded this winter by unusually frigid weather.

More than 45 days of subzero temperatures since late December have taken a toll on water systems - freezing pipes in Wausau, Weston and surrounding communities. Kimberly Oliva, who lives on South 14th Avenue, is one of about 300 Wausau residents who have struggled with frozen pipes in recent weeks. Oliva, 32, left her home Saturday morning; when she returned 24 hours later, she found her water pipes had frozen.